Thermal module mounting holder

ABSTRACT

A mounting holder for securely connecting a thermal module to a mainboard is disclosed. The mounting holder includes a main body, which has a receiving section and a plurality of extended sections outwardly extended from an outer periphery of the receiving section, and defines a first and a second open side at two axially opposite ends of the receiving section. A heat sink of the thermal module can be fitly set in and securely connected to the receiving section. Each of the extended sections has a locating section formed at a distal end thereof. Securing elements can be inserted into and moved in along the locating sections to align with mounting holes provided on the mainboard, so as to mount the thermal module atop a central processing unit on the mainboard. With these arrangements, the mounting holder provides good mounting flexibility and saves costs for making different molds.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a thermal module mounting holder, and more particularly to a thermal module mounting holder that can be adapted to a variety of mainboards having differently distributed mounting holes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The progress in semiconductor technology enables various integrated circuits (ICs) to have gradually reduced volume. For the purpose of processing more data, the number of computing elements provided on the presently available ICs is several times higher than that on the conventional ICs of the same volume. When the number of computing elements on the ICs increases, the heat generated by the computing elements during the operation thereof also increases. For example, the heat generated by a central processing unit (CPU) at full-load condition is high enough to burn out the whole CPU. Thus, it is always an important issue to properly provide a heat dissipation device for ICs.

Most of general heat sinks are made of metal materials with high thermal conductivity. Meanwhile, to obtain enhanced heat dissipation effect, a fan is further provided along with a heat sink to remove heat from the heat sink, and the heat sink is usually in the form of a radiating fin assembly. Moreover, a heat pipe can be further provided along with the radiating fin assembly to speed the transfer of heat to a distant location for dissipation, so as to prevent the IC against burning out.

The heat sink is mounted on a mainboard corresponding to a heat source thereof, such as a CPU. Heat generated from the heat source is absorbed and then radiated into ambient space by the heat sink to achieve the purpose of heat dissipation. The heat sink is mounted on the mainboard via at least one mounting holder. Since there is a variety of mainboards and CPUs of different specifications and accordingly different sizes, heat sinks for use with them also have different sizes. Under this circumstance, differently designed heat sink mounting holders must also be provided to match mainboards having mounting holes differently distributed thereon. That is, different molds must be made corresponding to different mounting holders and the molds are not interchangeable for use, which inevitably increases the manufacturer's costs. In brief, the conventional mounting holders for mounting heat sinks to different mainboards have the following disadvantages: (1) requiring high cost to manufacture; and (2) not interchangeable for use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A primary object of the present invention is to provide a thermal module mounting holder that is adaptable to a variety of mainboards having differently distributed mounting holes.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a thermal module mounting holder that provides good flexibility in use to thereby save a lot of mold and manufacturing costs.

To achieve the above and other objects, the thermal module mounting holder according to the present invention is configured for fixedly mounting a thermal module atop a CPU on a mainboard, and includes a main body, which has a receiving section and a plurality of extended sections outwardly extended from an outer periphery of the receiving section, and defines a first and a second open side at two axially opposite ends of the receiving section. The first and second open sides communicate with the receiving section. A heat sink of the thermal module can be set in and securely connected to the receiving section. Each of the extended sections has a locating section formed at a distal end thereof, and the locating sections extend through the extended sections in a thickness direction thereof.

The locating sections on the thermal module mounting holder of the present invention are so configured that securing elements can be correspondingly inserted into and moved in along the locating sections to align with mounting holes provided on the mainboard, so as to exactly connect the heat sink to the mainboard.

Since the thermal module mounting holder of the present invention can be adapted to a variety of mainboards of different specifications, it provides better mounting flexibility than the conventional mounting holders to save costs for forming different molds. In brief, the present invention has the following advantages: (1) saving mold and manufacturing costs; and (2) providing high flexibility in use.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The structure and the technical means adopted by the present invention to achieve the above and other objects can be best understood by referring to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a thermal module mounting holder according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an assembled view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a thermal module mounting holder according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a thermal module mounting holder according to a third embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a thermal module mounting holder according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will now be described with some preferred embodiments thereof and with reference to the accompanying drawings. For the purpose of easy to understand, elements that are the same in the preferred embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals.

Please refer to FIGS. 1 and 2 that are exploded and assembled perspective views, respectively, of a thermal module mounting holder according to a first embodiment of the present invention. For the purpose of conciseness, the present invention is also briefly referred to as a mounting holder herein. As shown, the mounting holder in the first embodiment includes a main body 1.

The main body 1 has a receiving section 11 and a plurality of extended sections 12; and defines a first open side 111 and a second open side 112, which are located at two axially opposite ends of the receiving section 11 and communicate with the latter. The extended sections 12 are outwardly extended from an outer periphery of the receiving section 11, and respectively have a locating section 121 formed at a distal end thereof. The locating sections 121 correspondingly extend through the extended sections 12 in a thickness direction thereof.

The main body 1 is provided on the first open side 111 with a plurality of fixing holes 1111. A heat sink 2 can be set in the receiving section 11. The heat sink 2 is provided at positions corresponding to the fixing holes 1111 with at least one engaging hole 21. In the illustrated first embodiment, there are four engaging holes 21 provided on the heat sink 2. By threading screw fasteners 3 through the engaging holes 21 and the fixing holes 1111, the heat sink 2 is securely connected to the first open side 111 of the main body 1.

The locating sections 121 are respectively in the form of a sliding slot, into which a securing element 4 can be correspondingly inserted. The securing element 4 in each of the sliding slots can be moved to different positions according to actual need. And, in the illustrated first embodiment, the sliding slots are curved slots.

The mounting holder of the present invention is configured for fixedly mounting a heat sink of a thermal module (i.e. the heat sink 2) to a mainboard 5. On the mainboard 5, there is mounted a central processing unit (CPU) 51. Since the CPU 51 has a size varying with its specification, mounting holes 52 provided on the mainboard 5 around the CPU 51 for connecting the mounting holder to the mainboard 5 are located at positions varying with the specification and size of the CPU 51. With the locating sections 121 being formed as curved sliding slots on the extended sections 12 outwardly extended from the receiving section 11 of the main body 1 of the mounting holder, the securing elements 4 can be moved in along the corresponding locating sections 121 until they are aligned with the mounting holes 52 on the mainboard 5. Then, the securing elements 4 can be extended into the mounting holes 52 to fixedly mount the main body 1 of the thermal module mounting holder and accordingly, the heat sink 2 to the mainboard 5.

Please refer to FIG. 3 that is a perspective view of a thermal module mounting holder according to a second embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the mounting holder in the second embodiment is generally structurally similar to the first embodiment, except that the locating sections 121 in the second embodiment are respectively in the form of a straight sliding slot.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a thermal module mounting holder according to a third embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the mounting holder in the third embodiment is generally structurally similar to the second embodiment, except that the locating sections 121 in the third embodiment respectively include a plurality of locating holes 1211, which are located at positions corresponding to the mounting holes 52 differently distributed on different mainboards 5.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a thermal module mounting holder according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the mounting holder in the fourth embodiment is generally structurally similar to the first embodiment, except that the receiving section 11 in the fourth embodiment is configured for setting a water block 6 therein.

With the above arrangements, the thermal module mounting holder according to the present invention provides good flexibility in use to adapt to a variety of CPUs of different specifications and sizes, and therefore enables largely reduced mold and manufacturing costs.

The present invention has been described with some preferred embodiments thereof and it is understood that many changes and modifications in the described embodiments can be carried out without departing from the scope and the spirit of the invention that is intended to be limited only by the appended claims. 

1. A thermal module mounting holder, comprising a main body; the main body having a receiving section and a plurality of extended sections, and defining a first and a second open side located at two axially opposite ends of the receiving section and communicating with the receiving section; the extended sections being outwardly extended from an outer periphery of the receiving section and respectively having a locating section formed at a distal end thereof; and the locating sections correspondingly extending through the extended sections in a thickness direction thereof; wherein the locating sections are respectively in the form of a sliding slot; and wherein the sliding slots are curved sliding slots.
 2. (canceled)
 3. A thermal module mounting holder comprising a main body; the main body having a receiving section and a plurality of extended sections, and defining a first and a second open side located at two axially opposite ends of the receiving section and communicating with the receiving section; the extended sections being outwardly extended from an outer periphery of the receiving section and respectively having a locating section formed at a distal end thereof; and the locating sections correspondingly extending through the extended sections in a thickness direction thereof, wherein the locating sections respectively include a plurality of locating holes.
 4. (canceled)
 5. The thermal module mounting holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the main body is provided at the first open side with a plurality of fixing holes, and the receiving section is configured for setting a heat sink therein; the heat sink being provided at positions corresponding to the fixing holes with at least one engaging hole, such that at least one screw fastener can be extended through the at least one engaging hole and one of the fixing holes to securely connect the heat sink to the main body. 